Clint Capela set the tone early for the Atlanta Hawks in win vs IND

Eight-year center Clint Capela is easily the Atlanta Hawks (38-37) most physical presence. The 6–foot-10, 240-pound big asserted as much in Monday’s 132-123 win over the Indiana Pacers. Yes, the Pacers were even more short-handed than the surprisingly undermanned Hawks. The final score was also a lot closer than anyone would have hoped.

Still, the Hawks have stacked a couple of wins a good chance to add a third in a row on Wednesday versus the Oklahoma City Thunder.

They also got back over .500 for the first time in three-plus months.

While we have celebrated the efforts of Bogdan Bogdanovic (29 points, 5-of-7 3P) and Kevin Huerter (22 points, 6-of-10 3P) from long distance. It cannot go unheralded the job Capela did on the inside.

The Atlanta Hawks need Clint Capela to keep being aggressive early in games

Capela finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds, and three assists to just two turnovers in over thirty minutes of action. It is his second double-double and 31st of the season. It also gets him back on the track he was on just a week ago before a couple of down outings saw him dip below 20 minutes against the Detroit Pistons.

March has been his best month since December with the Swiss big man averaging 11.6 points and 10.9 boards while shooting 65.6 percent from the floor.

He averaged 12.2 points and 13.7 rebounds on 57.0 percent shooting through November and December. His production waned through January and February, though, as he put up just 9.2 points and 10.3 boards.

The drop-off in his scoring happened from November to December.

Capela went from 13.4 points per game to 10.8 despite only losing less than 1.0 attempts per game. His rebounds shot up by 0.3, the same margin by which his attempts went down. After another, albeit slight, dip in January, he averaged just 8.4 points per game in February. That is woefully low even for a player not thought of as an offensive weapon.

The culprit was an ankle injury that sapped him of much of his mobility and explosiveness.

Capela recently sat down with The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner (subscription required) and talked about feeling as good as he has all season lately.

It is certainly showing as he had six points and seven boards in the first quarter alone, also notching two of his assists. He had six points and six boards in the opening frame against the Golden State Warriors on his way to 19 points and 13 rebounds.

He tied for the team lead in shot attempts in the first quarter against Indy. On the season, he is tied with Kevin Huerter for fourth on the team with 2.9 attempts in the opening frame. But this isn’t about getting him a certain number of looks as it will lead to wins. Or that putting him in a certain action or situation will lead to a particular outcome either.

Instead, this is about Capela needing to be as aggressive as he has now that he is healthy for the Hawks to peak.

In what has been an up-and-down season for the team, Capela has been a relative rock. But even he admits his play was not up to snuff for portions of the campaign. He won’t use injuries as an excuse, but it’s hard not to notice the difference.

At least it seems the nagging ankle injury – that had bothered him for two years – seems to be behind him. And what better time as the Hawks gear up for the Play-In Tournament and, hopefully, another extended playoff run.

A team that likes to rely on its highly-effective three-ball prowess needs the physicality that Capela brings.